Magistrate Sends Murder Case to Circuit Court, With Probable Cause

Magistrate Richard Browne of the Buchanan City Court in Grand Bassa County has, with probable cause, transferred a murder case to the Second Judicial Circuit Court in the county, following the ruling of the preliminary examination proceeding of the case last weekThe case was formally brought before the court for pre-trial proceeding on September 10 with the dependants Samuel Tarragban, James Reeves, Emmanuel Joludoe, Onegar Zangban, Philip Zeo, and Daniel Ben being charged with murder.At the call of the case, the state was represented by the Ministry of Justice through its prosecuting Attorneys with the Buchanan City Solicitor Isaac Yorcee and Buchanan Assistant City Solicitor Johnson Tukeh, in association with Grand Bassa County Attorney, Cllr. Onesimus Banwon.The county’s Public Defender, Cllr. Paul P. Jarvan represented the legal interest of the defendants.Following the representation, which the court granted, the state moved the court for a plea of nulli prosequio in favor of three of the defendants, Onegar Zangban, Daniel Ben and Philip Zeo, and the Public Defender interposed no objection.The court having granted same, gave an order to the clerk of the court, Samuel Bryant, and he qualified and sequestrated the state witnesses in the persons of Onegar Zangban, Philip Zeo and Daniel Ben, as well as the Deputy CID Commander of the Grand Bassa County Police Detachment, John W. Toby.The state’s first witness, Onegar Zangban, testified that he met defendants Samuel Tarragban, James Reeves and Emmanuel Juludoe brutally killing Nimley Tarr in an old sugar cane farm near Pay’s Town in District #1, in Grand Bassa County, on August 10, 2014.He further explained that the prime defendants threatened to kill him should he expose the incident to anybody.The second state witness, CID Deputy Commander John W. Toby, in his testimony, narrated that during their preliminary interrogation, the missing man (Tarr) was on August 24, 2014 discovered dead in a sugar cane farm in Pay Toe’s Town in District #1, with the arm and heart missing. He quoted the testimony of witness Onegar Zangban.In his ruling after the testimonies of the witnesses and arguments between the state prosecution and the defense lawyer, Magistrate Browne said murder is universally considered one of the greatest crimes against society.He reiterated that society must be protected by the law of the land and someone held for that crime must be for probable cause established, and where the evidence proven fails to meet the test, then the law will acquit the accused.According to Magistrate Brown, the state witnesses’ testimonies were reliable, trustworthy and corroborated with the coroner’s jury reports which linked in the proof of circumstantial, presumptive and positive evidence that built a solid chain of probable cause.He underscored that in view and wherefore the state had established probable cause that a crime was committed and the defendants committed murder, they are answerable at the Second Judicial Circuit Court in the county.Based upon his order, the Clerk of the court, Mr. Stephen Quahgar, has transmitted the record of the trial proceedings along with the defendants to the Second Judicial Circuit Court in Upper Buchanan for trial.Meanwhile, the clerk of the Circuit Court, Mr. Emmanuel Quergar, has acknowledged receipt of the records from the Buchanan City Court along with the defendants in question. Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)